Apparatus and method for portable liquid drug delivery

Abstract

An apparatus includes a cartridge having a liquid drug reservoir configured to hold a liquid drug and a volatile liquid reservoir configured to hold a volatile liquid. The cartridge is configured so that vaporization of at least some of the volatile liquid creates a flow of the liquid drug out of the liquid drug reservoir. The apparatus also includes a flow sensor configured to monitor the flow of the liquid drug, a liquid valve configured to regulate the flow of the liquid drug, and an insertion unit configured to deliver the liquid drug to a person. The cartridge may also include a vaporized gas chamber configured to hold the gas. The gas in the vaporized gas chamber expands and pushes the liquid drug out of the liquid drug reservoir.

1 . An apparatus comprising:
 a cartridge comprising a liquid drug reservoir configured to hold a liquid drug and a volatile liquid reservoir configured to hold a volatile liquid, the cartridge configured so that vaporization of at least some of the volatile liquid creates a flow of the liquid drug out of the liquid drug reservoir;   a flow sensor configured to monitor the flow of the liquid drug;   a liquid valve configured to regulate the flow of the liquid drug; and   an insertion unit configured to deliver the liquid drug to a person.   
   
   
       2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the volatile liquid vaporizes into a gas and results in a gas pressure depending on a cartridge temperature. 
   
   
       3 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein:
 the cartridge further comprises a vaporized gas chamber configured to hold the gas; and   the gas in the vaporized gas chamber expands and pushes the liquid drug out of the liquid drug reservoir.   
   
   
       4 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the volatile liquid is at least one of: butane, dichloroluoromethane, ethleneoxide, ethylchloride, ethylamine, acetaldehyde, and isopentane. 
   
   
       5 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising a controller configured to receive data associated with the flow of the liquid drug from the flow sensor. 
   
   
       6 . The apparatus of  claim 5 , wherein the controller is further configured to send a control command to the liquid valve to regulate the flow of the liquid drug. 
   
   
       7 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the controller is configured to generate the control command based on one or more of: a current reading of the flow of the liquid drug, a current time, a programmed basal rate, and an on-demand adjustment to the basal rate. 
   
   
       8 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising an interface unit comprising an input and a display. 
   
   
       9 . The apparatus of  claim 8 , wherein the input comprises one or more buttons that allow a user to program one or more liquid drug delivery schedules and to activate a programmed drug delivery schedule. 
   
   
       10 . The apparatus of  claim 8 , wherein the display is configured to present one or more of: a current time, a programmed basal delivery rate, a reading of a current liquid drug flow rate, and a temporary adjustment to the basal delivery rate. 
   
   
       11 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the liquid drug reservoir is flexible and is separated from the volatile liquid reservoir by a barrier. 
   
   
       12 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the insertion unit is a disposable micro-needle coupled to a pump body without tubing and the liquid valve is a normally closed valve that uses one of: a proportional flow control and an on-off flow control. 
   
   
       13 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the liquid drug comprises insulin. 
   
   
       14 . A system comprising:
 a delivery pump comprising:
 a disposable cartridge comprising a liquid drug reservoir configured to hold a liquid drug, a volatile liquid reservoir configured to hold a volatile liquid, and a vaporized gas chamber, the vaporized gas chamber configured to hold gas formed by vaporization of at least some of the volatile liquid so that the gas in the vaporized gas chamber creates a flow of the liquid drug from the liquid drug reservoir; 
 a flow sensor configured to monitor the flow of a liquid drug; 
 a liquid valve configured to regulate the flow of the liquid drug; and 
 an insertion unit configured to deliver the liquid drug to a person; and 
   a monitoring unit configured to monitor a condition of the person.   
   
   
       15 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the delivery pump further comprises:
 a controller configured to issue control commands to the liquid valve based on data received from the flow sensor; and   an interface unit configured to display data.   
   
   
       16 . The apparatus of  claim 15 , wherein the condition of the person comprises at least one of: a glucose level, a blood pressure, a body temperature, and a pulse rate. 
   
   
       17 . The system of  claim 14 , wherein the delivery pump is configured to be placed at different positions of the person. 
   
   
       18 . A method comprising:
 creating a liquid drug flow using a vaporized gas;   monitoring a flow rate of the liquid drug flow;   adjusting a valve opening of a valve for the liquid drug flow based on a difference between the monitored flow rate and a programmed rate; and   delivering the liquid drug flow from the valve opening to a person.   
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 identifying a second monitored flow rate of the liquid drug flow; and   readjusting the valve opening based on the second monitored flow rate.   
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 19 , further comprising displaying a start time, an end time, a basal rate, and the second monitored flow rate.